Monthly Archives August 2018

A late strike by Dinesh Singh proved enough for FC Pune City as they registered a hard-fought 1-0 win over Defending Champions KMP XI in a mouth-watering WIFA Youth Championship U-14 final at the Cooperage Stadium on Thursday evening. This was the first time FC Pune City participated in the WIFA Youth Championship as they were not a part of the same in the first edition last season.

Nonetheless, KMP (Keshav Madhav Pratishtan) XI gave a good fight, right until the final whistle. They almost scored an equalizer in the injury time when a free-kick effort rattled the bar. Winning the inaugural edition last time around, a runners-up medal has surely cemented KMP’s name into the history books.

It was in the 49th minute when FC Pune City’s Dinesh Singh scored a sublime left-footed goal which broke the deadlock. The goal gave FC Pune City a huge boost in their quest to lift the WIFA Youth Championship title. KMP XI’s Samuel Selvadas and Mustafa Shaikh were man-marked brilliantly which put a halt to KMP’s attack.

Franklin Nazareth and Dinesh Singh were tremendous throughout the game. The duo kept their composure and guided the rest of their teammates in the dying minutes to round-off a brilliant campaign. Their Captain Franklin Nazareth won the ‘Best Player of the Tournament’ while Kenkre FC’s Dexter Fernandes was awarded the ‘Golden Boot’ after netting 11 goals in the Championship.

28th August 2018, Mumbai: The quarter-finals of the WIFA Youth Championship U-14 concluded earlier today at the Cooperage Stadium. Patakadil TM (Kolhapur), FC Pune City (Pune), Defending Champions KMP XI (Pune), and Khandoba TM (Kolhapur) won their respective games to clinch a place in the last four.

It was a difficult day for the Mumbai-based teams as all the remaining three teams from Mumbai bowed out of the campaign. MSSA lost to Patakadil TM, Lemon Break suffered a defeat at the hands of FC Pune City, and Kenkre FC went down fighting against Khandoba TM.

With two teams each from Pune and Kolhapur, the rivalry between the two districts intensifies further with the bragging rights on the line.

The game of the day was between Kenkre FC and Kolhapur’s Khandoba TM. After taking a deserving lead in the 26th minute through Rohit Mehra, Khandoba TM bounced back with two goals. Prajwal Powar levelled the score before Sanket Medhe headed home to put Khandoba TM 2-1 in front.

With time running out, Kenkre FC equalized through Daksh but they conceded in the very next minute through Swayam Salokhe which initially sealed the game for Khandoba TM.

Meanwhile, in the early kick-offs, Patakadil TM and FC Pune City registered an identical 3-1 win and Defending Champions KMP XI edged past Nashik’s NFCC 1-0 to book their place in the last four.

The Group Stage of the ongoing WIFA Youth Championship U-14 has been concluded. From 16 teams, we are now down to just 8 teams. Tomorrow, the likes of KMP XI, FC Pune City, Lemon Break, MSSA, NFCC, Patakadil TM, Khandoba TM, and Kenkre FC will battle it out in the quarter-finals to book their berth in the last four of the second edition of WIFA Youth Championship U-14.

In the last couple of days, Group C and Group D matches were played at the Cooperage Stadium after the completion of Group A and Group B. Both the Kolhapur-based teams Patakadil TM and Khandoba TM had an outstanding Group Stage campaign. They left no stones unturned on their course to finish at the top of their respective groups.

Patakadil’s forward Abhishek Powar is having a tremendous campaign so far while Khandoba, on the other hand, has delivered a more collective performance. Mumbai’s Lemon Break suffered a painful loss in their opening game against Patakadil but they bounced back with two huge wins to book their place in the next round. One of their wins included a whopping 14-0 victory, courtesy Mohd. Mansoori and Vivek Roy’s lethal finishing.

Nashik’s NFCC just made it to the next round but they were involved in two thrilling matches. Their clash against Mumbai’s Football School of India (FSI) and Khandoba was nothing short of a nail-biting encounter.

23rd August 2018, Mumbai: With the conclusion of Group A and Group B matches, the WIFA Youth Championship (U-14) has its first four quarter-finalists of the 2018-19 campaign. Defending Champions KMP XI, FC Pune City, Kenkre FC, and MSSA (Mumbai School Sports Association) have booked their place in the quarter-finals.

Group A

Yesterday at Cooperage Stadium, MSSA defeated Yodha FC (Solapur) 3-0 to cement their place at the second spot in Group A. Ahmed Khan bagged a fine brace, whereas, Shirish Pote scored the other goal. In the other Group A game, FC Pune City scored four past Rahul FA to maintain their hundred percent record in the Championship, so far.

Prolific striker Dinesh Singh ended up scoring twice while Mohd. Mansuri and Kunvarpal got apiece to help FC Pune City finish at the top of Group A.

Group B

Dexter Fernandes scored a total of nine goals to help Kenkre FC register a huge 16-0 win against Star FC (Solapur). But Kenkre FC still fell short of finishing at the top of Group B as holders KMP XI registered an emphatic 8-0 win over DDYS (Nagpur) earlier today to cement their superior goal-difference.

Mustafa Shaikh and Ravi Rathod combined brilliantly upfront which proved to be lethal in front of DDYS’ defense. Vikram Rathod and Samuel Selvadas also got on the scoresheet who have been tremendous throughout the Championship so far.

22nd August 2018, Goa: Maharashtra’s forward Tricia Collaco scored in the last minute to secure a hard-fought 1-0 win against Punjab in their second group stage game in the ongoing Junior Girl’s National Football Championship at Duler Stadium.

Both the sides had their chances throughout the game but it was Tricia in the 89th minute who showed composure before placing her effort into the back of the net.

Although this result doesn’t confirm Maharashtra’s progress into the next round as they had previously lost to Bihar 2-1. Tomorrow, Bihar will face Punjab in their last group game.

22nd August 2018, Mumbai: The Day 2 was as eventful as the opening day. FC Pune City became the first side to book their place in the next round while DDSY romped to a comfortable win as well in the WIFA Youth Championship U-14 at Cooperage Stadium.

Group B: DDSY (Nagpur) 7-0 Star FC (Solapur)

After suffering a defeat at the hands of Kenkre FC yesterday, DDSY bounced back with a seven-star performance against Star FC in their second group stage game. It was forward Prince Singh’s show at Cooperage Stadium as the young attacker went on to find the back of the net four times.

His partner-in-crime Arpan Mahajan and Anish Thakare also got on the scoresheet to complete a memorable win and stay in contention to qualify for the next round.

Group A: MSSA (Mumbai) 0-2 FC Pune City (Pune)

In what was a thrilling contest, the game between MSSA and FC Pune City was surely one of the best contest of the Championship so far. FC Pune City’s Vian Murgod broke the deadlock in the 10th minute before Dinesh Singh sealed the game in the second-half with a sublime finish to take FC Pune City in the next round.

20th August 2018, Mumbai: The second edition of WIFA Youth Championship (U-14) went underway yesterday at Cooperage Stadium. A total of four matches were played which included two Group A and two Group B matches. Defending Champions KMP XI registered a mammoth victory with FC Pune City, MSSA, and Kenkre FC winning their respective games as well on Day 1.

Group A – FC Pune City (Pune) 2-0 Yodha FC (Solapur)

A decent showing gave FC Pune City a comprehensive 2-0 win over Solapur’s Yodha FC in the opening game of WIFA Youth Championship (U-14) 2018-19 at Cooperage Stadium. Dinesh Singh opened the scoring in the 24th minute before Captain Franklin Nazareth’s goal in the second-half sealed the tie for FC Pune City.

Group B – KMP XI (Pune) 11-0 Star FC (Solapur)

Defending Champions KMP XI left no stones unturned in their opening fixture as they romped to a stunning 12-0 win over Star FC in Group B encounter. Samuel Selvades and Vikram Rathod bagged hat-tricks while Durgesh Singh (2), Vrushabh Khese, Ajay Jadhav, and Yash Pardeshi also got on the scoresheet.

Maharashtra Sub-Junior Boy’s cruised into the next round with a comprehensive 2-0 win over Madhya Pradesh in Maharaja Umed Singh Stadium, Jodhpur, in the ongoing Sub-Junior National Football Championship 2018-19 (West Zone).

In their previous game, Maharashtra had scored seven past Daman and Diu in what was an emphatic victory. Jaden Irani and Mustafa Shaikh had bagged a staggering hat-trick for Akhil Kothari’s side. Mustafa continued from where he left as it was his twin strike which helped Maharashtra to register a 2-0 win over Madhya Pradesh.

It took Mustafa just a minute to open the scoring before doubling his tally in the additional time of first-half. Two games, two perfect results.

Yesterday, in their opening game of the campaign, Maharashtra went down fighting 2-1 at the hands of Bihar in the Junior Girl’s National Football Championship 2018-19 in Goa.

Bihar scored two quick-fire goals in the first-half which turned out to be the difference. Forward Karishma Kumari opened the scoring in the 31st minute before Pallavi Goswami doubled the lead just two minutes later.

Maharashtra finally managed to cut short the deficit when Akanksha Kandalkar converted from the spot for Maharashtra in the second-half but it wasn’t enough to rescue a point for Durva Vahia’s spirited side.

This is not the end of the road as Maharashtra is yet to face Punjab which will be their last Group Stage game. A must win match for Coach Durva Vahia’s energetic team.

On Saturday, Maharashtra registered a whopping 7-0 victory over Daman and Diu in their opening game of Sub-Junior National Football Championship 2018-19 at Maharaja Umed Singh Stadium, Jodhpur. Under the guidance of Akhil Kothari and Mohammad Saad Ansari, Maharashtra left no stones unturned to pick up all three points to make a dream start.

Jaden Irani opened the scoring before Satish Kondamuri doubled the lead for Maharashtra. The goals kept coming as Daman and Diu struggled to keep Maharashtra’s attack at bay. Mustafa Shaikh, Yash Gangwal, and Jaden added three more goals just before the half-time whistle.